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Brief Summary

We used to make fun of the French, but now we’ve changed our minds: They have the right ideas about lots of things, including how to have fun on a boat. Or maybe more accurately, how to design a boat for having fun aboard. The Prestige 46 FB is a case in point: It combines a comfortable flying bridge with a spacious saloon and a nearly beach-sized cockpit and swim platform to create a floating playpen for adults. Oh, there are three cabins, too, in case you tire of the outdoors.

Key Features

Specifications

Length Overall

47' 8'' 14.55 m

Beam

14' 3'' 4.36 m

Dry Weight

27,972 lbs. 12,688 kg

Tested Weight

N/A

Draft

3' 11'' 1.20 m

- Draft Up

N/A

- Draft Down

N/A

- Air Draft

N/A

Deadrise/Transom

N/A

Max Headroom

Bridge Clearance

N/A

Weight Capacity

N/A

Person Capacity

N/A

Fuel Capacity

1,404 gal. 1,530 L

Water Capacity

151 gal. 570 L

Length on Trailer

N/A

Height on Trailer

N/A

Trailer Weight

N/A

Total Weight(Trailer, Boat, & Engine)

N/A

Prices, features, designs, and equipment are subject to change. Please see your local dealer or visit the builder's website for the latest information available on this boat model.

Engine Options

Std. Power

2 x 500-hp Cummins QSC 8.3

Tested Power

Currently no test numbers

Opt. Power

Not Available

Prestige Yachts 46 (2010-) Line Drawing

Captain's Report

There’s a usable swim ladder stowed in the platform, which is decked in slip-resistant teak. Lift a hatch, and you’ll find a stowage locker for a life raft. Don’t laugh: Other builders would do well to follow Jeanneau's lead on dedicated life raft stowage if they are no already doing it. Anytime you’re farther away from shore than you can swim, you might need one.

The Jeanneau Story

Jeanneau is one of France’s most prestigious yacht builders, and has been for more than 50 years. Henri Jeanneau, an automobile and airplane enthusiast, became enthralled with powerboating in the late 1950s. He built a wooden raceboat, won the 6-hour Paris motorboat race and decided to start his own boatbuilding company.

After the Jeanneau design team creates the Prestige hulls, Studio Garroni draws the profile and styles the yachts. Garroni is the design team of choice for many of the world’s most fashionable superyachts.

When Jeanneau started building in fiberglass in 1961, he tested his boats on nearby Lake Tricherie – by running them at top speed over a wooden ramp, through the air and across a road to land in an adjacent field. If the boat and the driver, always Jeanneau himself, survived, the boat went into production. Today, Jeanneau uses more sophisticated testing methods, but their boats – the company builds both sail and power -- are still well-built and highly regarded by folks who know about such things.

Sidedecks are wide enough to walk forward without crabbing, and protected by high stainless rails. And unless that model is anorexic, the foredeck sunpad is huge.

Environmental Leader

Henri Jeanneau’s first employees were a handful of canoe builders, but today the company employs more than 2,000 in its vast shipyard in Les Herbiers, France. It’s one of the world’s largest yards certified to meet ISO 9001 quality and ISO 14001 environmental standards. In keeping with their concern for ecology (the French are leaders in the environmental movement – remember Jacques Cousteau?), Jeanneau builds their boats using resin-injected molding to trap irritating and sometimes harmful solvents before they escape into the atmosphere – not only is this ecologically sound, but it makes for a better laminate as well. The company goes so far as to use a varnishing technique requiring low levels of solvents and “drying” by UV light rather than evaporation.

The ladder to the flying bridge is really a bona fide staircase, wide enough to make climbing easy. Once everyone is on the bridge, a hatch closes off the stairs to ensure nobody takes an inadvertent tumble back into the cockpit. Why are there always so many women on French yachts?

Mediterranean Prestige

The Prestige line includes yachts from 32 to 50 feet, each one designed and styled in the Mediterranean manner. The Presige 46 FB is a prime example of the genre, combining lots of sporting, sunning and entertainment potential with ample accommodations for spending a few days aboard. There are two staterooms with double berths and a third with twins; aft is an optional crew’s cabin, in the Euro style suitable for anyone willing to live in a cave. We expect American owners will pass on that one.

There’s a big sunpad on the flying bridge, and a round table that will seat several folks. Both upper and lower helms are nicely designed with plenty of room for electronics. The saloon is comfortable for the whole crew to hang out after a day in the sun. The galley is up, but we suspect it’ll be used more for making drinks and snacks. Note the mini-dinette opposite the helm. The master stateroom, forward, enjoys an ensuite head, while the other two cabins have to share. We aren’t crazy about the double berth against the bulkhead in the starboard guest cabin – it’s awkward getting in and out.

Performance

Powered by twin Cummins QSC 8.3 500-hp diesels, its top speed is a shade over 32 knots, according to Jeanneau test figures, with an economical cruise around 25. We did not test this boat, so don’t hold us to these figures. But that’s a typical top speed for a boat like this – nobody would buy a Med-style cruiser that failed to break 30 knots. Fuel burn at WOT is, again according to the builder, 184 liters/hr (48.6 U.S. gallons); at cruise, 121 l/hr (32 gals.).

The cockpit is shaded by the bridge overhang, and provides easy access to side decks and flying bridge. Primary engine room access is through the lazarette, reached via a hatch here. There’s also access in the saloon.

Aside from the curvy styling, especially evident in deckhouse windows, Med-style yachts have a few quirks that Americans sometimes find unnerving. The first is their low-profile flying bridges, better suited to sitting than standing – a trait that makes some Americans, including some of us here at BoatTEST.com, worry about being pitched overboard by an unexpected wake. Jeanneau must agree, since the Prestige 46 FB’s bridge is nicely protected by tall stainless rails port and starboard. Although we still wouldn’t wander around on the bridge while underway, the rails would make us feel more comfortable when moving.A radar arch holds scanner and antennas; we’d like it a bit higher to keep microwaves from tickling our brains, but there’s a lower station for use when the weather closes in and you need radar.

The saloon is basically all seating, plus the galley. You could fit a crowd in here with room left over. Everyday engine access is through a hatch in the sole. No surprises in the master stateroom, with its island berth. Well, maybe the mirror is out of the ordinary, but this is a French boat, after all. The extreme bow flare is obvious, and makes the cabin footprint pretty small.